Maybe you heard "Sing" with its Pharrell hook and its borderline dance beat and wondered how Ed Sheeran could exist in that world without becoming a cartoon character. Well, you were close: Sheerann has become a puppet to explore this flyer side of his personality, where he can model a pair of Beats, hit a strip club and basically get jiggy with it (but with a knowing wink).
UK boy band Rixtonmight not have the budgets of bigger stars, but they have an idea. Actually, they have other people's ideas. The boys take the lo-fi piss out of some of the past year's most memoriable videos — yes, of course there's a Wrecking Ball and Blurred Lines, but also clips by Rihanna, Bieber, Gaga and Katy — before stumbling upon a mass make-out concept that suits them just fine.
The math behind the 3 million+ views this has racked-up is simple: Priyanka Chopria looks like an exotic supermodel who also happens to be the biggest movie star back home in India. The song is a bit dance/pop-by-numbers — and the video doesn't aspire to be more than a high-end beauty piece in exotic locations — and for extra insurance, they got PItbull to bless it and bring in his own sizable audience.
It's all as it should be, to be honest, basically an example of how to use a debut video to and song to exactly brand someone who could very well be the next J-Lo. In fact, let's call her P-Cho.
